In addition to the companionship a dog offers, canine-human partnership also provides health and social boosts for adults, children and seniors, according to a special report by doctors at Harvard Medical School and MSPCA-Angell.

The findings detail how having a dog boosts activity levels and helps people maintain a calmer presence in their daily lives. Children also can become more responsible, social and active by helping care for a dog, the report describes, and seniors' lives can benefit as well.

While dogs can help improve the health of humans, co-authors Elizabeth Pegg Frates MD of Harvard Medical School, and Lisa Moses VMD of Angell Animal Medical Center also describe how important it is for pet parents to maintain their furry friends' well-being with regular veterinarian visits, daily activity, nutrition and training.

Read more about the findings or how to purchase a copy of the report here.

The klipspringer calf, a male, was born in the Exhibition Africa space on February 15, weighing less than two pounds. It will be a few weeks before it ventures out into the exhibit area for vistors to see.

The zoo said that this is the second calf for mother Vera, who arrived in May 2013 with a leg injury that ultimately led to her back leg being amputated.

The sire of the new unnamed calf was Marley. It joins its sister Oreo, which was born last July 2014.

According to the zoo, klipspringers are small antelopes that occupy steep, rocky terrain on the savannahs of eastern and southern Africa. They reach about 22 inches at the shoulder and are relatively small animals compared to some of their larger antelope cousins.

Jake from Pet Rescue by Judy and the must-see racing movies, in honor of the Daytona 500.

Jake from Pet Rescue by Judy and the must-see racing movies, in honor of the Daytona 500.

For eight years, you give your unwavering love and loyalty to a family -- protecting the house, showering your masters with affection, behaving like a gentleman -- and then, just as your youth is fading, the humans have a kid and grandpa moves in and, boom! You're given to a homeless pet shelter and wind up in a foster home.

Welcome to Jake's world.

This 80-pound black-lab-boxer mix is loyal as the day is long, and we're talking a mid-summer day in the far northern hemisphere. But at the moment he is looking for someone to give his loyalty to.

Want to play ball? Why, he'd love to!

Go for a ride? He thought you'd never ask!

Snuggle by your side? Take a walk? Stare out the window while you go out into the world and he awaits your return? Yes. Yep. You betcha!

Forty-two percent of pet parents plan to purchase something special for their pets on Valentine’s Day, according to Old Mother Hubbard’s “Bits of Love’’ survey. Another 11 percent plan to fix their furry friend a special meal, research shows.

And if you care to share the love on social media, Old Mother Hubbard is holding a “Smooch Your Pooch’’ photo contest throughout February. Those who enter have a chance to win a year’s supply of Old Mother Hubbard natural dog treats. Contestants also can enter on Instagram using #OMHSmoochYourPooch and @oldmotherhubbarddogsnacks. You can read more about how to enter the contest here.

More results to love from the survey: 54 percent tell their pets daily that they love them; 21 percent plan to bring them new toys for Valentine’s Day, and 1 in 10 pet parents say they’ve used pet photos as part of their online dating profiles.

No one should be alone on Valentine's Day -- and no pet should be without a home.

That's why Orange County Animal Services is hosting a special speed dating event Friday to help match some of their loving animals with forever homes.

Speed daters will be able to walk past 80 dog kennels and 50 cat kennels during the event, then when they feel that special spark they can take the cat or dog to one of the interaction areas to see if it really is puppy love at first sight.

“There’s no doubt you’ll fall in love with one of our great shelter pets,” Dil Luther, division manager of Orange County Animal Services, said in a press release. “So if you’re looking for that purrfect Valentine I encourage you to visit the shelter.”

The speed dating event coincides with the shelter's Furever Love adoption promotion, reducing the price per pet by $14 to $26 for cats and $41 for dogs. But if you can't narrow it down to just one, know that the shelter is doing a buy-one-get-one-free special on cats all...

Max Jr.is up for adoption, but he has heartworms. (Orange County Animal Services)

Max Jr. is a 3-year-old, 62-pound cutie-pie. He's got one blue eye, one brown, and two big brown patches of fur on his otherwise white head. He's friendly, playful, cooperative, walks well on a leash and is housebroken.

But Max may never find a home.

Max has heartworms.

He's part of an alarming trend at Orange County Animal Services these days: Compared to a year ago, the shelter is seeing an 80-percent increase in the number of dogs coming in heartworm-positive.

“With preventative options readily available, it is incredibly saddening to see such an increase in the number of dogs suffering,” said Dil Luther, Division Manager of Orange County Animal Services. “Many of these dogs would make great family pets as they are well-behaved, friendly and playful."

But dogs with heartworm are rarely adopted, a shelter spokeswoman says. Treatment isn't cheap or quick and not all dogs survive it – although newer protocols have boosted survival rates considerably.